Privacy Policy

1. Scope

This Policy applies to personal information we collect online and offline in the course of our business.

It does not apply to third-party websites, tools, platforms, or services that have their own privacy notices, even if we link to them or use them in connection with our work.

Depending on context, we may act as:

• a controller or business for information we collect for our own operations; and/or
• a processor, service provider, or contractor when we process information on behalf of a client under a separate agreement.

2. Information We Collect

We may collect the following categories of information.

A. Information You Provide Directly

When you contact us, request a review, subscribe to updates, submit a form, or engage us for services, we may collect information such as:

• name;
• work email address;
• phone number;
• company name;
• job title or role;
• website or domain;
• project, business, or request details;
• scheduling information;
• billing, invoicing, and transaction information; and
• any other information you choose to send us.

If you request a Confidential Review, we may collect information such as your name, work email, company, role/title, website, selected areas of focus, business context, timeline, and any additional details you submit.

B. Information Collected Automatically

When you use our website, we and our service providers may automatically collect information such as:

• IP address;
• approximate location derived from IP;
• browser type and version;
• device type and operating system;
• referring and exit pages;
• pages viewed and on-site interactions;
• timestamps and session data;
• campaign parameters and referral source; and
• cookie IDs, analytics identifiers, and similar technical identifiers.

C. Information From Other Sources

We may receive information from:

• analytics and measurement providers;
• communications, scheduling, and CRM tools;
• business directories and public sources;
• review or lead platforms;
• referral partners; and
• clients, counterparties, or authorized representatives.

D. Account and Access Information

If we provide you access to a restricted area, portal, or editorial system, we may collect and process:

• login identifiers;
• authentication provider details;
• account profile information;
• access timestamps, IP addresses, and session activity; and
• audit and security logs.

E. Service Records and Work History

If you become a client or otherwise work with us, we may create and retain records relating to the relationship, including:

• proposals, statements of work, contracts, and approvals;
• project files, strategy notes, deliverables, and workflow records;
• invoices, payment records, and accounting records;
• communications, meeting notes, and operational logs; and
• AI-assisted workflow records, prompts, outputs, annotations, and approvals, as described below.

F. Sensitive Information

Please do not submit social security numbers, government ID numbers, financial account credentials, protected health information, legal secrets, or other highly sensitive personal information through general website forms unless we explicitly request it and provide a secure channel.

If you send sensitive information to us without request, we may delete, quarantine, or refrain from processing it except as necessary to protect our systems, comply with law, or respond to your communication.

3. How We Use Personal Information

We may use personal information to:

• operate, maintain, secure, and improve our website, systems, and services;
• respond to inquiries, proposals, briefing requests, and communications;
• evaluate fit and context for potential engagements;
• provide services and manage client relationships;
• authenticate users and manage access;
• measure website usage and performance;
• send service, security, transactional, administrative, and marketing communications where permitted;
• maintain records, invoicing, accounting, legal, and compliance processes;
• detect, prevent, investigate, and respond to spam, fraud, abuse, or security incidents;
• enforce agreements, terms, and policies;
• protect our rights, systems, personnel, users, and clients; and
• support AI-assisted and automated business workflows as described below.

4. AI Tools, Automation, and Records

We may use AI-enabled tools, internal systems, and automation to support our operations and services. Depending on context, this may include research support, summarization, classification, drafting assistance, workflow routing, note organization, signal monitoring, editorial support, and quality control.

In connection with those systems, we may process and retain records such as:

• prompts, instructions, and configuration settings;
• source materials, reference inputs, and workflow context;
• outputs, drafts, summaries, notes, and recommendations;
• annotations, revisions, approvals, and quality-control records; and
• technical logs, audit trails, and system activity records.

We use AI tools to assist operations and service delivery, not to replace human judgment where oversight matters.

Unless we expressly disclose otherwise in writing, we do not intentionally use confidential review submissions, private client materials, or restricted workspace content to train publicly available third-party AI models.

We do not use this website to make solely automated decisions about individuals that produce legal or similarly significant effects.

5. Cookies, Analytics, and Similar Technologies

We use cookies, tags, scripts, local storage, and similar technologies for website functionality, security, performance measurement, and analytics.

Essential technologies

We may use technologies that are necessary for:

• site security;
• load balancing;
• session integrity;
• spam prevention; and
• providing requested services.

Analytics

We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to help us understand website traffic, usage patterns, and site performance.

We use GA4 for measurement and site improvement. We do not use Google Analytics Advertising Features, Google Signals, remarketing, or ads personalization features in our standard setup.

We do not intentionally send personally identifiable information to Google Analytics. You should not submit personal information into website fields, URL parameters, or other inputs that could be transmitted through analytics tooling.

Where applicable law requires consent before analytics technologies are enabled, we will request that consent before enabling those technologies. If consent is not provided, analytics may be limited or disabled in those jurisdictions.

Your choices

You can manage cookies and similar technologies through your browser settings. Some features of the site may not function properly if essential technologies are disabled.

You can manage preferences at any time through Cookie Settings.

6. How We Disclose Personal Information

We may disclose personal information to the following categories of recipients:

A. Service Providers and Vendors

We may use service providers that help us run our website, communications, operations, analytics, and services, such as providers for:

• hosting, cloud infrastructure, and databases;
• website analytics and measurement;
• email delivery;
• scheduling and communications;
• identity and access management;
• security, anti-spam, and fraud prevention;
• document storage and collaboration; and
• AI, automation, or workflow support tools.

Depending on our active setup, those vendors may include providers such as Google Analytics, Google Cloud / Firebase, SendGrid, and similar operational tooling.

B. Clients, Counterparties, and Authorized Representatives

If you work with us on behalf of an organization, we may share relevant information with your employer, colleagues, clients, counterparties, or authorized representatives as necessary to perform the engagement.

C. Professional Advisors and Legal Compliance

We may share information with accountants, auditors, lawyers, insurers, regulators, law enforcement, or courts where reasonably necessary to comply with law, protect rights, respond to legal process, or investigate misuse, fraud, or security issues.

D. Business Transfers

We may disclose information in connection with a merger, acquisition, restructuring, financing, sale of assets, or similar corporate transaction.

E. With Your Direction or Consent

We may disclose information where you ask us to do so or consent to the disclosure.

7. Sale, Sharing, and Targeted Advertising

We do not sell personal information for money.

We do not knowingly use personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising, and we do not use advertising cookies, remarketing cookies, or Google Analytics Advertising Features in our standard setup.

If our practices change in a way that triggers additional opt-out or choice requirements under applicable law, we will update this Policy and any required website controls.

8. Confidentiality, Client Materials, and Service History

We treat client and prospect information with discretion.

As part of our operating standards, we may preserve records of inquiries, engagements, deliverables, communications, strategic context, approvals, workflow history, and related service records for continuity, quality control, legal, compliance, security, and recordkeeping purposes.

We do not publicly disclose client names, strategic materials, or work history without permission, except where required by law or where information has already been lawfully made public by the client or another authorized source.

This section does not replace any separate confidentiality or nondisclosure agreement.

9. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, including to:

• respond to inquiries and manage follow-up;
• provide services and maintain service continuity;
• preserve operational, financial, tax, legal, and audit records;
• investigate or defend against disputes, claims, or security incidents; and
• enforce agreements and protect our business.

Retention periods vary depending on the nature of the information and our legal or operational needs. When information is no longer needed, we may delete, aggregate, or de-identify it.

10. Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures designed to protect personal information from unauthorized access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure.

These measures may include access controls, authentication, role-based permissions, encryption in transit, vendor management, backups, logging, monitoring, and process controls.

No method of storage, transmission, or processing is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. International Transfers

We and our service providers may process personal information in countries other than your own, including the United States.

If personal information originating in the UK, EEA, or Switzerland is transferred internationally, we may rely on an applicable legal mechanism such as:

• an adequacy decision;
• standard contractual clauses;
• the UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA) or UK Addendum; or
• another lawful transfer mechanism recognized by applicable law.

We may also rely on contractual, technical, and organizational safeguards appropriate to the context of the transfer.

12. Your Choices and Privacy Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to:

• know or access the personal information we have about you;
• correct inaccurate personal information;
• delete personal information;
• receive a portable copy of certain personal information;
• object to or restrict certain processing;
• withdraw consent where processing is based on consent; and
• appeal a denial of your request where applicable.

If California law applies to you, you may also have rights relating to opt-out, correction, deletion, access, equal treatment, and, where applicable, limitation of certain sensitive personal information uses.

Submitting a privacy request

To submit a privacy request, contact:

office@thekingofsearch.com
Subject line: Privacy Request

You may also use our Privacy Request Form.

You may also manage your cookie preferences through our Cookie Settings button.

Please describe your request with enough detail for us to understand, verify, and respond to it. We may need to verify your identity before acting on your request.

Authorized agents

Where permitted by law, you may use an authorized agent to submit a request on your behalf. We may require proof of the agent’s authority and may also verify your identity directly.

Appeals

If we deny your request and applicable law gives you a right to appeal, you may email:

office@thekingofsearch.com
Subject line: Privacy Appeal

13. California Notice

If California privacy law applies, California residents may have rights that include the right to know, correct, delete, and receive equal treatment for exercising privacy rights. They may also have the right to opt out of sale or sharing and to limit certain uses of sensitive personal information where those rights apply.

We do not sell personal information for money. We do not knowingly use personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising.

We do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for purposes that we believe trigger a separate “limit use” right beyond the purposes reasonably necessary to provide requested services, protect security, comply with law, or operate our business.

14. EEA and UK Notice

If EEA or UK data protection law applies to our processing, our lawful bases may include:

• your consent;
• performance of a contract or steps taken at your request before entering into a contract;
• compliance with legal obligations; and
• our legitimate interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms.

You may also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.

15. Children’s Privacy

Our website and services are not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information online from children under 13 through our public website or general forms.

If you believe a child has provided us personal information in violation of this section, contact us and we will take appropriate steps to investigate and address the issue.

16. Third-Party Sites and Services

Our website may link to or integrate with third-party sites, review platforms, social media platforms, embedded content, or external tools. Those third parties have their own privacy practices, and we are not responsible for them.

17. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The “Last Updated” date above reflects the most recent revision. If we make material changes, we may provide additional notice where required by law.

18. Contact Us

For general privacy questions, contact: